The disclosed invention addresses the need for an underride guard design for trailers, trucks and other transportation vehicles as mandated by certain newly promulgated regulations for federal motor vehicles safety standards involving rear impact guards and rear impact protection. Rear impact guards and similar impact protection devices may sometimes be referred to as bumpers in a more conventional sense, comparing such members to the equivalent crash protection device found on conventional automobiles and similar vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration now requires all new transportation vehicles falling under the defined categories to install underride guards meeting the standards issued. Standard FMVSS223 is an equipment standard that specifies requirements that underride guards must meet before being installed. Standard FMVSS224 is a new vehicle regulation mandating the installation of underride guards on most new trailers and semi-trailers with a GVW rating of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or more. Standard FMVSS224 also specifies the location of the guard on the vehicle or trailer.
In the past, trailers frequently employed a simple rear impact guard comprised of a horizontal member which acts as a rudimentary bumper. Such horizontal member did not comply with any energy absorption standard and was not designed for the purpose of controlling energy absorption which might be experienced by the member in an automobile collision or other similar situation where a moving vehicle or other mass was striking the member.
The federal regulations which the present invention addresses specifies that the underride guard must have a horizontal member with a cross-sectional height of at least four inches throughout its length. The beam must be able to withstand two levels of force depending on where the force is applied along the horizontal member of the guard.
The specifications referenced indicate that the horizontal member must not deflect more than 125 mm (5 inches), when subjected to a force of 50 newton (11,240 pounds) applied at either end of the horizontal member. The same deflection tolerance applies when a 100 newton force (22,480 pounds) is delivered at a point where the horizontal and vertical members intersect. A 50 newton force should cause no more than 125 mm deflection when applied to the beam at a point midway between the two vertical members. There are additional requirements that the guard must demonstrate the ability to absorb energy. The specification requires that unless the underride guard uses a form of hydraulic cylinders to absorb impact, it must absorb by plastic deformation at least 5,650 J (4,167 ft. lbs.) of energy within the first 125 mm (5 inches) of deflection. The present invention is one simple, straightforward solution which is designed to meet the requirements of the above specified regulations.
It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a trailer underride guard which is simple to install, requires no hydraulic operating members or other such devices.
It is also the object of the present invention to provide a underride guard bumper for trailers which complies with the requirements of the National Transportation Safety Administration specifications.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a trailer underride guard protection bumper which may be easily retrofitted to existing transportation vehicles or used in other scenarios where a crash guard protection bumper is required to absorb energy from a striking object or vehicle.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a vehicle underride guard protection bumper which provides a mechanism to adjust the operating force required to move the bumper by simple adjustment of torqing various fastening bolts or similar connecting means to apply pressure or friction across an integral braking mechanism within said bumper structure by adjustment of the torq applied to such connection or fastening means.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an underride guard bumper for vehicles which are reusable or resettable without replacement of structural members of the bumper after being involved in a vehicle strike.